Finding new Terrain in Norway

Norway Adventures

When I lived in Colorado, I averaged 80 day ski seasons and would spend most of the time hiking and hunting for the best snow, hidden in the corners of the resorts.

In order to start backcountry skiing, I took my AIRE Level 1 Avalanche Course, through the Alpine Club at my university. During this course, I was introduced to the dangers of the backcountry and was exposed to the tools needed to begin the learning process of navigating the treacherous avalanche terrain.

Avalanche Course Main Takeaways

• Avalanche terrain is between 30 - 45º+ slope
• Dig a snow pit to evaluate the layers of the snow
• Perform a column test to reveal snowpack volatility
• How to perform a search / rescue for the buried person(s)
• How to read terrain, Avalanche Paths, Terrain Traps, etc.
• Utilizing Avalanche Reports (CAIC, Varsom.no)

In 2015, I moved to Norway to be with my girlfriend.The terrain in Norway is not as steep as the mountains in Colorado, but they still posses plenty of avalanche threats.

We were ready for our first winter of skiing in Norway, however, we did not really know where to go. To start with, we asked friends and colleagues who we knew backcountry skied and got some insights as to where they were skiing. We also checked Instagram, to look at the locations tagged in photos, to see if we could find some trips nearby. Between the combination of the two, we were able to embark on a few ski journeys.

Since the winter days in Norway are quite short, our ski touring season did not really start until the end of February / early March. With the longer days, it provided us with adequate time to go out and explore new terrain.

Easter vacation is a prime time to go skiing in Norway. Norwegians get a long weekend, Thursday to Tuesday off, so we wanted to plan a trip. We decided on going to a place called Leirvassbu. A cabin located in Jotunheimen National Park, outside of the town of Lom. Here we spend 4 days skiing many 2000 meter peaks.

To plan this trip, I had to call DNT, the Norwegian Trekking Association, to figure out the best places to go.

With Vertrax, the goal is to avoid this tedious process, by providing users with an easy way to discover new trips in unfamiliar terrain. However, this is a delicate process.

You have to know the avalanche conditions and not just the conditions for the next three days, but also what the weather has been like for the past weeks. Because this all has important information about the snowpack.

Our goal is to pair the weather and avalanche conditions with the trip making process, to provide a one-stop shop, for planning backcountry adventures.

We would love to hear from you if you have any ideas about how you like to plan your trips!

Checkout Vertrax.io